Ryu's Story
by Murai
Summary: This is a fanfiction for the otome game Animal Boyfriend produced by the company Ambition. Ryu is a wolf turned human by the Gijin Labs and given to Xiren as a human in training. Follow his adventures as he learns to become a human. Precautionary rating M: Suggestive themes and controversial ideology.
1. Chapter 1

Shouts came from my left and I turned to snap orders. I would destroy them all. Turn every last one to dust never to rise again. The acrid smell of smoke filled my nostrils and the thrill of destruction coursed through my veins. With a roar of power, I leapt across the field and began my massacre. My body flew toward my enemy with ferocity and bloodlust.

"Ryu again!" I cracked my eyes open as the female voice shouted near my ears and the fog from my dream faded from my brain. "Get off me you stupid wolf." The angry feminine voice again assaulted my sensitive ears and I felt something squirm out from under my arm. With a yawn I turned my head toward the voice.

On the other side of the bed was the angry face of the woman who was my teacher. My arm was draped over her and she was trying to wriggle her body out from under it. I raised my arm and rolled onto my side. "Morning." I greeted the woman and was greeted with a glare.

"Morning? Why the hell must you insist on sleeping in my bed…naked none the less? You have your own bed, in your own room!" Her indignant voice carried as she sat up and slid her legs over the edge of the bed. I watched as she stood up and brushed her fingers through her long dark locks. Her green eyes flashed angrily as I continued to lounge on her bed. With a sigh she walked to the adjoining bathroom and I watched as her body moved under her night gown. The light blue fabric highlighted the dark markings…tattoos drawn across her back and down her arms.

The door to the bathroom closed and I leaned back on the myriad of pillows strewn across the bed. I traced my fingers down the tattoo drawn across my face and smiled. When I first became human the lack of defining markings was disconcerting and made identifying humans insanely difficult. Tattoos were unique enough they made identification easier. Though, now that I've been human for a while, it's become easier to tell them apart. I heard the sound of the shower start and closed my eyes. I tried to keep my mind from imagining that woman's body as the water from the shower ran across it.

The first time I saw a human woman that was attractive I was surprised that I reacted to her. As a wolf the things I found attractive in females were their tails or maybe a favorite marking on their fur and I figured I'd never see humans with lust, but I was wrong. Some human females held an attraction to this human body that my mind seemed to share. The first encounters I had with human females were in the beginner student dormitories. Naturally we were paraded around to various women that were to take us on as students and teach us to be proper humans.

Shion asked every woman that came to his office which species of animal they wanted, and then we were paraded around before the teacher for them to choose one of us. The teachers that came to examine us were all the same to me at first. Each one of them blushed as they looked at me and were unable to hold eye contact for long. I became human to become a stronger being and as such needed a teacher wielding power of her own. Humans were far stronger than wolves, not in the sense of ferocity, but in their ingenuity. Being able to utilize weapons gives humans a great power over other creatures. I wanted this power.

After several weeks of the monotony, a woman dressed in extravagant clothing like a few of the more prominent teachers that came to choose their students came to the dormitory. Of course they chose cats or rabbits so I wasn't going to bother with her. I was rather surprised when Shion called the wolf group out and instead of us being paraded around, she followed the once student to our dorm. That was unusual as most teachers liked to have us display ourselves for them. Even more surprising was when I caught her eye. She held my gaze and was able to refrain from a blush.

"I'm Xiren." She held her hand out to me and as she extended her arm I saw her markings…tattoos show under the edge of her jacket sleeve. I took her hand and introduced myself. After filling out all of the paper work, she led me around town and to several high end style shops. She bought more clothes than I'd ever wear and most of those cloths still hung unworn in my closet. The way she carried herself as we walked around town reminded me of alpha females in wolf packs and how they carried themselves.

As I dozed reminiscing on the past, I heard the shower stop and not long after the click of the door as Xiren exited the bathroom with a towel wrapped around herself. She sighed as she saw I was still lounging in her bed and headed into her walk in closet. Once my teacher hid herself so she could dress, I smiled and sat up from the bed. With a stretch I slid from the bed, walked to the door of the bathroom and got into the shower.

Showers were one of the many things that made becoming human worthwhile. The scent of roses assailed my senses as I closed the shower doors. Xiren loved the scent of these flowers and used several rose scented things. With a sigh I turned on the water and closed my eyes as the rain-like spray washed over my body. Showers were relaxing and an easy way to get clean. At the beginner dormitories many of the students had strong fears of showers and refused to take them. After lathering the fragrant soap across my body and rinsing it off, I stepped out of the shower and could smell the nice scent of bacon cooking.

Grabbing a towel from the rack, I wrapped the towel around my wet hair and wolf ears and shook out my tail as I left the bathroom. Rubbing the towel across my long dark locks to help dry them, I made my way to the kitchen. The smell of breakfast wafted to my nose as I entered the warm kitchen. Xiren was standing at the stove finishing the French toast when I came in. "Finally done using _my_ shower I see." She sighed as she put the toast on two plates. I quickly wrapped the towel around my waist before she turned to me. Humans had a thing for clothing that I don't understand and my teacher was a stickler for keeping at least one part of my body covered in public.

Setting the plates with scrambled eggs and bacon along with the toast, Xiren turned to me and waved for me to sit. I complied and took my place at the head of the table. Food tasted different as a human and it took me some time before I could adjust to having food cooked. The food Xiren made always tasted good and she did try to accommodate my tastes by providing lots of meat and not cooking it too much. Though, she had an annoying habit of forcing me to eat prey foods like carrots. "I have an appointment this morning with a client who wants some help dressing her student so you'll have to study by yourself today. That means stay home and learn something." Xiren informed me as we ate.

My teacher did fashion work for the city and often had to go visit teachers and their students to help them with styles. She was making the world pleasing to the eye as she put it and she even worked closely with some of the shops to help design clothes for teachers to purchase. Her job was lucrative and I've learned I get to reap the spoils of her work. I have a larger closet than many of the students I've meet and the home Xiren owned was large enough for both of us and much more.

"I'll study." I held back a smirk as I committed to my studies. As 'students' we were expected to learn to be human by learning to read, write, speak and so on. Most of that didn't interest me much, but being able to read did have the advantage of being able to learn about the different weapons and wars humans got themselves involved in. Most of what I studied when Xiren was out were books on war and military strategy or criminology and such. If Xiren was watching what I studied I studied mathematics and history and other boring subjects.

The only good thing about studying the boring subjects was Xiren rewarded every correct answer with spoonfulls of the delicious substance known as peanut butter. Nothing beat the taste of that creamy, delicious, smooth substance. The first time I tasted peanut butter was in a sandwich and I practically attacked Xiren for more of it.

With breakfast over Xiren cleared the table as usual and grabbed her things to head out for her appointment. I watched as my teacher left and went up the stairs to the spare rooms and entered the one that was supposed to be mine. This house was custom built with five rooms each with a walk in closet, adjoining bathroom, and what Xiren calls a hobby room. Mine was at the top of the stairs and I only used it to store the enormous amounts of clothing I now owned.

I pulled out a pair of pants to put on, grabbed a large book on war, picked up my pack of cigarettes and headed back down the stairs to the sitting area. Studying sometimes became difficult as other students tended to drop by sometimes with their teachers and sometimes without. Some of these social interactions get annoying and some of them are interesting. I have a few regulars that come by and they can be fun though some of them are irritating.

Opening my book I turned on the stereo and tuned into one of the radio stations that played electronic music. Propping my feet up on the table I lit my cigarette and opened the book. Sure enough I only got a few pages into my chapter before the doorbell rang. With a sigh I closed my book and got up.

As I opened the door an excited rabbit rushed in to hug me. "Hi Ryu! Hugs and sparkles for you." The white haired rabbit student excitedly greeted me as he hugged me tightly. I carefully held my cigarette away from him to keep from setting the fluffy haircut on fire.

"Yo Iori." I greeted st the rabbit let go of me.

"How are you doing Ryu?" The man asked excitedly.

"Good though I'm in the middle of studying."

"Oh then I'll let you get back to it. I have to get going anyway. Teacher wants me to try for the Daily Socializer Ranking today. Bye!" The excitable man skipped off in a flurry of glitter as I shut the door. One socialization down I returned to the couch and returned to my book.

Several minutes later another knock came at the door. With a sigh I closed my book and opened the door. "This time I'll beat yo-" Another wolf student fell flat on his face as he ran to challenge me. 1999 was the name of this student and he was as cumbersome as his name. The man swore he was an alpha wolf before, but for the life of me I couldn't see how such a klutz could ever be in charge of anything.

"And again you fail '99. Is there something you wanted?" I leaned against the door frame and puffed smoke mockingly in his face.

"Ah you have bested me again Ryu. You are indeed a worthy opponent, but I'll be back tomorrow. Mark my words!" The man shouted as he made his hasty retreat. I shook my head and sighed as I once again closed my door. With a stretch I returned to the couch and opened my book. After about an hour or at least a good enough amount of time for me to get a decent amount of my book read, the doorbell rang again. I once more closed my book and looked to see who came to visit.

"Good afternoon Ryu." Another wolf greeted me.

"Yo Jeyyku." I greeted this caller with a smile and put my arm across his shoulders. Jeykku was a shy guy and hated physical contact with others. I made sure to get in his personal bubble every chance I got. "Would you like me to make you a cup of tea?" I teased him and pulled him close to my bare chest.

"No thank you!" Jeyyku made a few strangled noises and shot me one of his ineffective glares as he pushed away from me. "I just stopped by to say hello and I will be leaving now." With that the man turned on his heel and left. I chuckled to myself as I once again shut my door.

The next few hours were quiet and I was able to get a good way through my book before the door opened and my disgruntled teacher came through the door. "Ugh why the fuck to people ask for my help then ignore it? They pay me thousands of K to assist their student and make them look good then turn around and put a ton of stupid shit on them! Every damn time a teacher needs help with a cat it's 'oh I saw this cute guy on TV named Sebastian and I want my cat student to look like him'." She shouted to no one in particular as she vented her frustrations from the day. Xiren's anger always made me smile and I listened halfheartedly as she recanted the endeavors of her day.

"Bad day?" I closed up my book and lit a new cigarette when she plopped down on the couch next to me.

"Just a wasted day." She sighed and leaned against me closing her eyes in mock drama. "I shouldn't complain after all teachers pay me lots of money to show them how to dress their students. It's their business if they want to throw that money away and disregard my suggestions." She turned her eyes up to meet mine. "How was your day? Meet any fun students?"

"Just the regulars." I shrugged and casually wrapped my arm around her body. Some days I had more visitors than others and since there were only a few interruptions to my studies I recounted how the students that did visit me were doing.

"At least your day was productive. Well let's finish up your socializing for the day. Come on I'll go with you to visit a few teachers." She hopped off the couch and headed for the door. With a sigh I set the book on the coffee table, put the lighter and pack of cigarettes in my pocket, turned off the radio, and followed after my teacher.

The two of us spent the remainder of the afternoon knocking on doors and visiting other students. One of our regular stops was at the teacher Wendy's door. Her student Jiji wasn't my favorite of the students out there. We don't really get along and I don't like the suggestive looks he tosses at Xiren, but Wendy and Xiren have a common interest in fashion and the two often talked for hours about various shop items and how said items looked with other items. Jiji and I usually sat in silence and yawned as the two women talked.

Another of our regular stops was at a teacher named Ni's home. Her rabbit student Kurogane was one of the few students I was truly comfortable around. Most rabbits were timid and shy, but Kurogane was strong and would have made a fine wolf. The two of us did most of the talking since we had the common interest of war and destruction. Our conversations often were about the various wars or weapons we'd recently read about.

Xiren and I made our rounds of the various teachers she liked to visit and headed home for the evening. The community of teachers and students was still small and with Xiren's fame the little bit of socializing we do often landed us on in the paper on the ranks of the Daily Socializer. For some reason many teachers pushed their students to socialize with as many people as they could so they could gain the temporary popularity that went along with the ranks.

Once we reached our door there was a note stuck on it from Shion. "Hmm…I wonder what this is about." Xiren muttered as she pulled the note from the door before entering the home. "Hopefully it's not a letter telling me to work harder on shaping up your rudeness or limit your smoking habits." She teased me with a light jab to my ribs.

"So I need to be ruder and smoke more. Got it. I think I'll drink more too." I teased back and put an arm around my teacher's waist as I shut the door behind us.

"You still want that gun don't you?"

"Damn." Xiren had promised that if I could be more polite she'd let me buy a gun. Guns were just one of the many weapons humans had and I really wanted one. I already had a good collection of swords, daggers, and other various small time weapons, but nothing as cool as a gun. Xiren scanned the note as she headed over to the kitchen to start dinner.

"Oh this is interesting." She muttered as she read through the note. I quietly sat the table and let my teach her work her way through the note. I lit the last cigarette in my pack and let her finish reading the note. "It appears we'll be getting a new housemate sooner than I thought. Shion's note states that I can choose a second student in a few days." She set the note on the table and I snatched it up to read for myself.

"Why do you want another student?" I growled slightly at the news. The note didn't make me feel much better. There was some nonsense about students really liking Xiren and possibly adding their voices to Shion's decision. I'd have to find out who these students are and deal with them. Xiren was my woman and I didn't like the idea of other men thinking about her.

"You have been fun to teach despite your penchant for sleeping in my bed and I know you are swindling people out of their money like one of those mafia boys in your books." She glanced at me with one of her 'I know what you've been doing' looks. It's not my fault people think I play fair. "I was telling Shion I'd like to try teaching another boy."

"I say you can't." I tossed the paper back on the table and removed the cigarette from my lips to knock the ashes in the tray as I gave a hard look to the woman who was my teacher. She deftly ignored my comment and pulled a pair of steaks from the fridge. I'd have to think about this new student thing. Xiren was mine that much I'd determined already, but a new male in the house would mean another man to look at her.


	2. Chapter 2

A few days after Shion's note arrived on our door, Xiren left me to my devices and went to the beginner's dormitories to pick out a new student. Despite my express distaste for even the idea of a new student my teacher was off looking at groups of other men. The thought of her examining other students put me in a bad mood and even after the rigorous work out and bullying a few people that owed me some favors, my mood hadn't improved. Xiren did concede not to get another wolf, but while I tried to persuade her toward a rabbit or something I could threaten to eat she decided to stick with the canine family. I lay on the couch a low growl perpetually rumbling in my throat while smoking my cigarette and staring up at the celling as I waited for Xiren to bring home the new student.

It's amazing how slowly time moves when you are waiting for something, be it something good or something bad. At least we had already done the shopping for the new student's clothes and with Xiren being the fashionista that she was, she didn't worry about any of the sizes on the clothes. She could always hem them up to make them fit better. If I'd have to wait for my woman to shop I'd end up tearing the house apart.

Finally, the door opened and I glared at it with the low menacing growl gaining volume as Xiren came in. The student that followed her stopped my growl and softened my glare. The man was beat up with bruises and cuts over most of his body. He had long silver hair that flowed to a violet color and dead soulless violet eyes. I caught his scent and could tell he was a dog. Good, Xiren had the instincts to choose an omega mutt. My glare turned into neutral look as I watched the mutt follow my teacher across the room and up the stairs to his room. With a quick motion I hopped off the couch and followed the pair. There was no way my woman was going to be alone with another man in my house. Besides I needed to show this low rank dog that I'm alpha and he needs to keep his hands and eyes to himself.

When I got to the new pack mate's room, he was standing in the center of the room with his arms out and following Xiren with his soulless eyes. I leaned against the door frame as Xiren took his measurements and after a few moments the dog noticed my presence. His violet eyes met my crimson ones and a soft glow filled his dead eyes bringing in some life. The dog looked me over and I could almost feel his eyes caressing my bare chest. It was an odd feeling and one that made me narrow my eyes suspiciously.

Xiren finished the measurements and turned to move to the closet when she must have caught sight of me from the corner of her eye. "Oh, Ryu I see you decided to come meet our new housemate. Ryu this is Kouta, Kouta this is Ryu." Xiren introduced us.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance Mr. Ryu." The dog bowed with a fluid movement and his eyes glowed with more of his strange light.

"Ah, finally someone who is polite." Xiren smiled as she patted Kouta's cheek.

"Polite? If he gets a gun before me Xiren so help me…" I left my sentence off with a growl. The one weapon I didn't have in my collection yet was a gun. Unfortunately, Shion outlawed the purchase of guns by students unless they have express permission from their teacher. To get that permission, Xiren insisted that I show politeness before I can have a gun. There was no way in hell this mutt would show me up.

"Oh, I do not favor guns." Kouta smiled softly and kept his glowing eyes on me. I could almost feel every movement the mutt made and something nagged in the back of my mind. Somehow I should know what this Kouta was doing, but the thought was eluding me. At least the mutt was content to not try gaining a weapon I don't have. Still there was something about this male I didn't like.

"Relax Ryu." Xiren waved nonchalantly too me and I growled again. The idea that this dog took precedence over my concerns or my presence was unacceptable. "Let's get you cleaned up Kouta. You poor thing you really took a beating. Did another student do this or are you clumsy?" Xiren asked as she started to lead the mutt to the bathroom. This I would not have, I kept the low growl in my throat as I followed the two into the bathroom. My alpha woman was not going to bath another man and was not going to be alone in a room with any man other than myself.

"Please don't worry about my injuries Miss Xiren. I did this to myself." The dog smiled with his strange presence and bobbed his head to Xiren.

"You did these injuries to yourself?"

"Yes my lady." Xiren looked at Kouta thoughtfully before pulling a bottle of shampoo, one of conditioner, and another of body wash from the cabinet.

"Did another student threaten you if you didn't beat yourself up?" I smirked at the dog and tried to hide my entertainment at the idea. I'd never thought of forcing someone to harm themselves before. It was an intriguing thought I tucked it away for future use.

"No, Mr. Ryu. I enjoy painful things." Kouta smiled at me and moved close enough to trail his fingers softly along my chest. Again I felt that strange pull or power from his actions. Something instinctively told me that this was normal for this man, but I couldn't figure out what this strange feeling was. The feeling that there was something important I was missing only served to sour my mood over another man living in my house. I needed something to let out my frustrations and just as I thought this, Kouta's words sank in and with a slight smirk I reached out to press on the pressure point located just left of the upper center of the chest. Kouta's eyes closed and he let out a soft moan indicating pleasure.

"I see you are a masochist Kouta. Now I understand your injuries." Xiren smiled at the dog who placed his hand over mine to keep my hand in place and pressed against my hand to further increase the pressure.

"Mr. Ryu is this a proposition?" His voice had a strange silky quality to it and I felt more of that power coming off from him. His body shivered as he moaned softly and stepped closer to me. Before I could react to Kouta's nearness, the man leaned forward and pressed his lips to mine. That nagging feeling I got from him intensified as his lips met mine. I heard Xiren make a strange gasping sound from across the room and tossed her a really quick glare. That feeling from the mutt brushed against something inside me and slid off. A moment after the sensation of something slipping from my psyche, Kouta broke the contact, released my hand, and stepped back with slightly wide eyes.

"My power doesn't work on you?" He dropped that glow in his eyes and stared at me for a moment.

"Power?" Both Xiren and I asked in unison.

"I can seduce anyone…except this wolf with the strange aura." Kouta looked me over with a critical eye.

"What are you talking about?" I asked the cryptic dog student.

"You are the first person that my power didn't work on."

"…Can you be anymore cryptic? What do you mean your 'power'?" I growled at this new housemate and folded my arms across my chest in impatience.

Kouta looked at me with his dead eyes for a moment before answering. "I have a power that I can use to seduce anyone and feed off their sexual aura."

"Uh huh…" I still didn't quite get what he was talking about, but then I didn't know how to ask the question I really wanted to ask. I could feel he was doing something to me, but I had no idea what and I didn't know how to put what I felt into a question. Before I had the chance to even attempt to think about the words I could use to ask my question, Kouta smirked at me and turned his head.

"My lady Xiren." His voice was silky as he elegantly held out a hand to my teacher and I could feel that power or whatever leak from him. With a growl I moved to pull Xiren into my bare chest.

"You dare use your 'power' on my woman?" My voice came out with a growl and a strong anger built in the pit of my being. The mutt for his part widened his eyes and I felt that power of his dissipate. Xiren, however, squirmed against my body and tried to escape my grasp.

"Ryu!" I loosened my grip on her body, but made sure I held an arm around her waist to show my possession. "I don't belong to you, besides Kouta is just being polite. Since you seem to have issues with my new student, you can help him bathe." She wrenched herself from my grip and moved to the closet packed with clothes for the mutt. After selecting a few elaborate Asain inspired outfits, she turned to dog and me. "I'll adjust the sizes on these for you Kouta. I should be done by the time you finish your bath." She gave me a warring look I knew well and headed out of the room.

"Tch." I growled as Xiren left the room with the clothes in her arms.

"My apologies Mr. Ryu." Kouta smiled at me with a sultry look in his eyes. "I did not realize she was your lover."

"Go clean yourself up." I growled at the dog after he gave his apology. I wasn't going to explain to him that my teacher and I weren't lovers, yet. I tossed the shampoo and body wash to the mutt and headed to the door. I had no interest in watching him bathe. The man could bath himself, after all Shion made sure all first time 'humans' learned basic hygiene.

"You are welcome to bathe with me Mr. Ryu." Kouta looked at me with a seductive glint in his eyes as he began to slowly undress. I glared at him as I exited the bathroom. I stood outside the bathroom door and pulled out my pack of cigarettes. Leaning against the wall I lit one of the cigarettes and thought about the predicament I was now in.

When my cigarette was burned down, the bathroom door clicked opened and the mutt stepped through. Apparently the man had found the bandages and first aid supplies since the cuts were attended too. "That bath is something magnificent." Kouta smiled as he wrapped a towel around his waist.

"Xiren's profession brings in a fair amount of money. All of the rooms have baths like that." I smirked slightly and remembered my first experience with the house. The dorms Shion ran for animals that just became human were dormitories and the rooms had double bunks and double desks. The bathrooms were communal as were the showers. Xiren's home had six bedrooms each with a lavish bathroom and what Xiren called a hobby room. I don't stay in my room, but it has a closet full of my stuff and the hobby room I turned into a safe for my collection of money.

"Oh? Does your room also have such a nice bath Mr. Ryu? I'd love a tour." The mutt gave me a sultry look and reached out to touch my chest again. I brushed his hand away and moved to leave the room. I heard a soft laugh and light footsteps following me as I left the room. The two of us made our way down the stairs and to the living room. Xiren was sitting on the couch and putting the finishing adjustments on the clothes for Kouta.

"Oh good just in time." She smiled and brought the Asian outfit over to the mutt. "I see you are teaching him your bad habits." Xiren glanced at me for a moment before smiling at the new student. I growled before flopping down on the couch and lighting another cigarette. "Go put this on and then we'll take you to meet some of the other students." Kouta bowed elegantly as he took the garment from her.

I watched as the mutt retreated into a room on the lower floor and presumably to change clothes. "I don't want him here." I growled at Xiren and looked her directly in the eyes.

"Relax Ryu. You are still my first student and my favorite wolf." She sat on the couch next to me and reached up to scratch my ears. I puffed on my cigarette and closed my eyes slightly at the attention. Having my ears scratched was both enjoyable and infuriating. I hated that this woman had even the slightest bit of control over me. While I enjoyed the attention from my teacher, the mutt came back into the room.

"This is quite nice, Miss Xiren." Kouta moved gracefully in the robes as he came up to us.

"You look perfect Kouta." Xiren smiled happily and hurried over to the dog. I growled as I put my cigarette out in the tray. "Hmmm… let's put some makeup on to cover those bruises. We want you looking your best for the introductions today." She took the mutt's hand and began to lead him to her room.

I growled again and moved to quickly block their path. "He looks fine. Let's go." I grabbed Xiren's arm and roughly led her to the door.

"Ow! Ryu knock it off!" She raised her voice to me and gave me a reproachful look.

"I don't mind going out like this Miss Xiren." Kouta smiled and moved toward us. He opened the door and bowed as he ushered us out. "Shall we?" His smile was that same seductive smile from before and it grated on my nerves. With a growl I put my arm around Xiren and headed down the street with my teacher and new housemate.


	3. Chapter 3

"Kouta, you said you only eat vegetables right? Are you just vegetarian or vegan too?" Xiren asked the mutt as she pulled out a few eggs for breakfast. I sipped on my coffee and waited for the caffeine to hit my system.

"I'm not vegan, Miss Xiren." Kouta smiled as he held his own cup of coffee and watched my teacher cook. I contained a small growl and laid my ears back as I watched his trailing eyes followed her as she cooked. I puffed on a cigarette as thoughts of the previous evening encroached themselves into my thoughts. Normally socializing time was just the usual meet and greet where I say a few words, the other student says a few words, and Xiren chit chats with the teacher, but yesterday was more Kouta giving flirtatious looks to the other teachers and students and obviously trying to sleep with them.

I hated to admit it, but the mutt did have a talent for making people blush and accept his advances. I'd have to keep an eye him to make sure he didn't make a move on my woman. At least he was up when I was making my way into Xiren's room for the night. My teacher prefers if I don't sleep in her room with her, but I like sleeping next to a warm body and she is my woman so she can deal.

Every night I smoke a cigarette while I wait for Xiren to fall asleep then I go into her room to sleep with her warm body. Kouta saw me on the couch last night and seemed curious. "Can't sleep Mr. Ryu, or waiting for someone? You look a little impatient." He asked me with his sultry words and alluring eyes.

"I smoke before I sleep." I answered him curtly and puffed on my cigarette.

"You still seem tense, perhaps I could help you relax?" His suggestive words pulled a growl from me. I had to give the mutt credit for his tenacity. I turned my sensitive ears to Xiren's room and waited for the click of her night light. She always fell sound asleep within two minutes of turning off her light. I didn't have to wait long before I heard that click. I kept an eye on the DVR clock and finished off my cigarette. Kouta hadn't moved from his place standing behind me. I figured the mutt was curious to see what I'd do and was trying to sate the curiosity. Or he was waiting for an answer.

Either way the two minutes ticked over and I put out the last bit of my cigarette in the ash tray. "Good night." I nodded to Kouta and headed into Xiren's room. My ears picked up a soft laugh from the dog and somehow he even managed to make that laugh sound lewd. Whatever his thoughts were, they didn't matter as long as he understood Xiren was mine and to keep his power or whatever away from her.

The thoughts of our interactions last night were interrupted by our teacher placing plates of food in front of us. Xiren was a decent cook so I left that skill to her. Breakfast varied from morning to morning, but was always good. This morning was omelets. Mine obviously had lots of ham cubes in it and a generous side of bacon. The mutt had no meat in his as far as I could tell, but he did have a large helping of some leafy stuff next to his omelet.

"Enjoy your food." Xiren smiled at us as she sat down to eat her breakfast. "I have an appointment this morning so Ryu, why don't you and Kouta go to the zoo?"

"The zoo sounds lovely, Miss Xiren." Kouta smiled and I growled. The zoo was a boring place to go and I had other things I wanted to do. Babysitting the mutt was not on that to do list.

"Good, then both of you can spend the day at the zoo. Oh, and Kouta you really don't need to keep calling me miss. Xiren is fine." She patted the mutt's cheek and I glared at her. The rest of breakfast went quietly and Xiren gathered our dishes before heading out.

"Get dressed and let's get this zoo trip over with. Xiren will ask about it when she comes home." I gruffly ordered the mutt and stood up from the table. I stretched my muscles before turning to leave the kitchen. I could hear Kouta's steps as he followed my example. I headed up the stairs and made the sharp right to my room. The bed has never been slept in, but the closet still held my clothes.

Pulling the door to the large walk-in closet I surveyed my choices. Clothes seemed so pointless to me and I wore as little of the stuff as I could. I sighed at this monotonous task before pulling out a pair of black jeans and combat style boots. The towel wrapped around my waist, left from this morning's shower, fell to the floor as I untied it. Quickly puling on my pants and stuffing my feet into the boots, I also grabbed a lighter and pack of cigarettes from my night stand. "Yo mutt, you ready?" I half growled to the new addition to the household.

"Yes I am, Mr. Ryu." Kouta immerged from his room wearing a light, short sleeved suit and dress pants. I shook my head at his choice of clothing. His clothes were too formal for a visit to the zoo, but he could learn that on his own. No need for me to interfere in his ability to dress himself.

The dog followed me down the stairs and out the door. I remembered to take a set of keys from the hook and lock the door before making my way to the garage. A button on the garage's entrance door signaled one of the limo drivers and I pressed it before entering the garage. Greg, our most recent driver, started the limo while Kouta and I got into the back. I let Kouta enter the limo first and slide to the wall. This limo had only one rear passenger door and I preferred to be near the exit so I could leave if necessary and so I could keep the mutt where I needed him.

"This is cozy." Kouta looked around the limo while our driver began navigating out of the garage and down the driveway.

"The limos are fully equipped." I shrugged and opened the refrigerator to pull out two beers as I instructed the driver to take us to the zoo. "You drink." My question was phrased as a statement rather than a question.

"I do and if I didn't know better I'd say you were making a pass at me." The mutt took the drink from me and let his fingers linger over mine. I shot him a glare and he removed his hand with that alluring smile he liked to show people. He put the beer to his lips and took a slow drink. My eyes rolled at his gesture. Even the menial task of taking a drink exuded sexuality from the man.

For the remainder of the ride I leaned back and closed my eyes as the limo made its way through the streets. Kouta stayed quite as well, but I could feel the assessing look of his eyes and every few moments he slid closer to my position. When I felt him lean against my side I opened one eye and glanced at him. One of the books I was studying said something about choosing your battles in life, and something told me this was not a battle worth fighting. I let the mutt lay against me until his hand started to slide down my leg. At that point I grabbed his wrist and growled.

"You can't blame me for trying." Kouta smiled that seductive smile before shaking his hand free and moving away. Thankfully, before the mutt could get a second chance to annoy me with his attempts to sleep with me we arrived at our destination. I set the empty beer bottle in the trash compartment and exited the limo. Standing off to the side, I lit a cigarette while I waited for my companion to get out of the vehicle. Once the silver haired man emerged from the limo I signaled the driver to leave and started toward the zoo gates.

"What exactly is a zoo?" Kouta asked as he strode to walk next to me.

"A place to view caged animals." My reply was simple as we walked through the gates and into the main area of the zoo. Several other students were walking around with their teachers and looking at the various decorations meant to garner the interest in the rest of the zoo. Xiren was one of the few teachers that had two students. Most only had one and had to be escorted by their teachers as they were still newly human.

"Let's get on the trolley and go to the jungle zone." I headed to the green car marked with bold letters as the line for the trolley was getting longer.

"What's in the jungle?" Kouta showed life in his usually soulless eyes as he asked about the destination.

"Larger predators. The cool stuff." I tossed the remains of my cigarette into the fountain by the jungle car line before cutting to the front of the line.

"Hey, cutting is rude. You need to go to the end of the line and wait." A small woman tried to scold me and I turned to glare at her.

"Please excuse us this once my lady." Kouta stepped in and linked his arm with mine. The gesture attracted attention from the woman and the mutt took the chance to cuddle closer to my body. I refrained from shaking myself free since his gesture seemed to appease the woman.

"Oh, I really shouldn't condone rude behavior." The woman blushed as she watched Kouta move closer to my body.

"My teacher is really strict." The rabbit student accompanying the woman chimed in. I shot him a slight glare and he hid behind his teacher.

"Please excuse my partner. We just wanted to find a good seat." The mutt winked at the woman and trailed his fingers down my bare chest. I gave a very soft warning growl to let the dog know he was starting to cross a line. The woman for her part blushed again and nodded her permission to let us stand in the front of the line.

The trolley driver finally opened the door to let passengers on and Kouta took my hand to pull me up the steps and to the back of the car. The mutt slid into the seat first and made himself comfortable next to the window. He smiled slightly and patted the spot next to him. With a sigh I sat on the seat, folded my arms across my bare chest, and leaned into the back cushion. Kouta leaned against me as the car started to move forward.

"That lovely lady keeps glancing in our direction. We should show her kindness wasn't in vain." His words were a whisper close to my ear. I knew a manipulative statement when a heard it and I glanced at him from the corner of my eyes.

"She can glance all she wants. I'm not playing to your fantasies."

For his part the mutt sighed and backed off a bit. He still leaned against my body, but at least he wasn't as touchy. The closeness of another person was comforting and I enjoy having warm bodies near me, but his flirtations are unwanted and it was too early in the morning to be fending him off. At least the trolley ride was short and soon pulled into the jungle loading point.

I shook myself free from Kouta's grasp and strode down the aisle to the exit. I could feel the mutt follow quickly behind me and once we stepped off the trolley, he once again looped his arm with mine and cuddled up to me. I let out a sigh and was about to roughly shake him off again until I caught the scent of coffee. I usually drank an entire pot of coffee before starting my day, but since Xiren insisted on being 'polite' I had to share that pot with Kouta and I was not in a good mood.

Kouta was trying to pull me to the large cat section of the jungle area, but a tug and shove toward the drink stand in the corner served to indicate my intentions. The student working behind the stand smiled happily and his white bunny ears bounced as he moved. I never understood why every rabbit out there was white. "Two coffees. Black." I ordered gruffly.

"Sure thing. Are you two on a date?" The bunny was probably trying to start a conversation, but I wasn't going to let him get any ideas.

"No." My reply was short and I tried to make my distaste for conversation clear in my voice.

"Sadly this gentleman isn't interested in men." Kouta stated with a dramatic sigh. "Such an attractive male and I can't do anything about it." His eyes met the workers and the bunny blushed faintly.

"I see…are you a second student for your teacher then?" The rabbit seemed to have a moment of intelligence and he looked impressed as the idea clicked in his head.

"Yes I am. Xiren is our teacher." Kouta continued the conversation with the rabbit until I cleared my throat to indicate my impatience.

"Oh sorry. Here are your coffees. Umm…it's on me today." The little rabbit handed us our drinks and kept his eyes on Kouta. "Good luck." He whispered softly to the mutt who unlinked his arm from mine to take the cup with both hands.

"Instead of luck, I can just come visit you." The dog winked at the stall worker as we turned to leave. I glanced at the mutt while I took a sip of coffee. "Relax Mr. Ryu, I'll still give you first dibs." He smiled seductively and looped his arm around mine again.

"No thanks. Nice job getting the coffee for free." I raised my cup slightly in acknowledgement of the mutt's achievement. "Do you often weasel free stuff from people by flirting with them?" I was genuinely curious about this concept. If Kouta could get people to give him things like that he'd be very useful to me.

"You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar as someone told me once. I can teach you my technique if you want." His eyes lit with that seductive glow of his and he leaned closer to me.

"I don't want to learn how you do that, I want to use that skill." The corners of my mouth tugged into a smile and I took a sip of my coffee. "This zoo trip won't be such a waste after all."

Kouta looked at me askance for a moment, but decided not to comment on my words. "I don't mind lending you my services." His words held the obvious double-entendre. "Let's go see the cats first. I like cats."

"I thought our domestic cousins hated cats." I teased the man as I finished my coffee and tossed it in a nearby bin.

"Not all dogs hate cats, dear cousin." Kouta played along with the jest and tossed his own cup in the bin. He slid his arm down and instead of having his arm linked with mine; he entwined our fingers together. "It really is a shame that this nice body of yours has such a limited pallet." The mutt trailed his fingers down my chest and hesitated just above the top of my pants before pulling back to his side.

Before I had a chance to reply to his seductive comment, Kouta released his grip and strode quickly to the fence in front of us. His fluffy tail wagged excitedly and his ears perked forward. The look reminded me of the pups in my pack when they caught sight of something new. At the thought of my old pack, I pulled out a cigarette and lit it. A puff of smoke poured from between my lips as I exhaled the smoke as I reminisced about my pack. I hadn't realized I missed my pack until now. Watching Kouta act like a puppy though made me think that perhaps I could look at Xiren and Kouta as my new pack.

"What has you so excited?" I asked the dog as I strode toward the fence.

"Leopards. Such intoxicating creatures." Kouta's eyes were carefully watching the spotted great cats in the enclosure. His violet eyes held that glow again and I leaned my back against the fence while the mutt admired his view.

"Oh, if it isn't Ryu." A small blonde haired woman addressed me and pulled her orange haired fox along. I nodded in her direction, but didn't acknowledge her statement with one of my own. "And who is this young man?" She asked as Kouta turned at the sound of her voice.

"My name is Kouta, my lady." Kouta bowed elegantly and lifted the woman's hand to his lips. I rolled my eyes as I watched the pair.

"You are a polite one. And so handsome. My name is Noxen." The woman's eyes flickered back to me before looking at Kouta again. "This is my student Fuuta. He's a fox." She pulled her student forward to greet us.

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well." Kouta bowed again and kissed the fox's hand. The fox blushed brilliantly and I smirked as I finished my cigarette. The first time I met Noxen was when I was still pretty new to being human. Xiren often went off on house calls and fashion shows, so after a few weeks of constant care she left me to socialize on my own. One of those days I met this teacher before us. It was an interesting interaction to say the least.

I was going around town and knocking on doors to greet a few people. I made sure to talk to the students that regularly visited me since I knew Xiren would ask them if I stopped by. It'd be her way of checking up on me. Several of the people I stopped to visit were for business reasons and a few were just because their home was on my route. One such home was Noxen's.

"If it isn't the handsome Ryu." Her eyes appraised me after she opened the door and saw me. "I've been hoping you'd stop by. Please, come in." She took my hand and practically pulled me into her small home. Her fox student was laying across the couch studying a book.

"The book is upside down." I advised the student and he blushed at the comment.

"Thank you." His blush deepened when he looked at me. From the look the fox gave me I got the impression he was one of the students that enjoyed the company of men more so than women.

"Are you into men or women Ryu? Or perhaps both?" Noxen asked me as she trailed her fingers down my bare chest.

"Women only." I kept my reply short, but did not move away from her touch. I had not yet slept with a human woman and this one was pretty enough for my body to react to her touch. As an alpha male I had plenty of time around the female wolves, but human women were new territory.

"I see." Her eyes were thoughtful as she continued to run her fingers over my muscles.

"A shame you aren't interested in men." Her student pouted and returned to reading his book.

"Don't mind Fuuta. He likes men and you are quite a fine man. I don't get much attention with my fox around." Noxen moved closer to me and ran her hands down my arms before entwining her fingers with mine. The touch was nice and the way this teacher moved was pleasing to me. "Why don't we go to my room and discuss your masculinity. I don't want to bother Fuuta and interrupt his studies." Her words held seduction as she tried pulling me toward a hallway.

I considered my options for a brief moment. I hadn't yet spent an intimate night in the company of a woman, but such were skills I should learn. After all, I had a strong alpha female of my own and she'd need a man who knew exactly what he was doing. I may have the skills of a wolf, but I don't have the skills in this body. The most I had for experience was the course book on women studies that Xiren bought me.

"You teach me about women and I'll teach you about men." I took a step forward to show that I was game for what Noxen was offering. Her smile brightened and there was a distinct saunter to her step as she led me down the hall. I followed closely behind her and glanced over the top of her head as she opened the door at the end of the hall.

The room was smaller than the rooms Xiren's home had, and the bed was a double at best, but it was functional and that was all I needed at that moment. Noxen led me through the door and closed it behind us. Before I had a chance to say anything, the light haired woman stood on her toes and wrapped her arms around my neck. The next thing I knew her lips crashed into mine.

The memory of that day flashed through my head for a moment before I returned my thoughts to the present.

"You know Ryu, we could pick up where you left off." Noxen punctuated her suggestion with a caress to my bare chest.

"I told you I am done with you." A personal rule of mine was to never sleep with a woman more than once. After all, I had an alpha female that I could rely on to be a steady mate.

"That again. Is your teacher really that good? You did have to come to me that time you know." Irritation was clear in her voice as she spoke to me. I leveled a glare at her and let out a warning growl. As I glared at her, I noticed a wallet sticking out of her back pocket. A smile crossed my lips as I formed an idea.

"Noxen, you've sampled me, why not turn your attentions to Kouta." I put my hands on her shoulders and turned her to face my housemate. Carefully I placed my hand on the small of her back to push her forward and encourage her to move toward the mutt. As I did so my quick fingers pulled the wallet from her pocket and quickly stuffed it in my own.

"He appears to be more into Fuuta than he would be in me."

"He enjoys the company of women as much as he does men." I tried to move her closer to Kouta again and in the process caught the mutt's eye. He seemed to catch my intent and turned his attention to Noxen.

"My lady, tell me how you know Ryu so well?" Kouta put an arm around Fuuta and pulled him toward the woman.

"Oh well it's a short story." Her eyes lit at the attention from Kouta and the mutt kept both Fuuta and Noxen occupied. With their attentions elsewhere, I pulled the wallet out of my pocket and examined the contents. There were only a few K in the wallet and a ticket to the mini gacha machine. The ticket was the only thing of interest. K was worthless to me since Xiren's fashion career kept plenty of K in the vault as well as G and Jin.

"We should move on Kouta. Xiren will wonder if we take too long here." I made an exit proposition and placed my hand on the small of Noxen's back again. With careful skill, I placed the wallet back into her pocket; sans ticket of course.

"If you insist Ryu. My apologies my lord and lady." Kouta removed his arm from around Fuuta and bowed to the pair. I had found the perfect use for my new housemate. His undeniable ability to attract the attentions of men and women would make pickpocketing much easier.

After the teacher and her student left I moved to where Kouta stood watching the pair leave. "I have a job for you." I lit another cigarette as I spoke to the mutt.

"A job?"

"You work that whatever you do on people to hold their attention while I relieve them of their wallets."

"You wish for me to help you steal? As long as I can collect their numbers and have my fun with them I'm okay with your job." Kouta looped his arm around mine again. I smiled at his casual willingness to help. Perhaps having a second student around would turn to my advantage after all.

The rest of our zoo trip was spent seducing other students and their teachers more than looking at the animals. I did make sure to interact with the various gift givers and get some of the free clothes from our trip. Xiren would ask about the zoo and she'd expect us to show the gifts to her. The koala and zebra masks probably wouldn't interest her, but I gathered them anyway. Things like the feathers and formal jackets she'd be interested in so I made sure to gather all of the jackets and such. We had quite a haul of clothing and valuables to pack into the limo for our ride home.


	4. Chapter 4

Fire burned to my left as the human body I possessed leapt across the battlefield. This body was showing the decaying signs of my demonic possession, but I had a being to remove from my lands. Ignoring the burning sensation across the skin of the body I was possessing, I spotted my opponent and let out a snarl. The bright figure across the battle field caught sight of me and ran off. A smile crossed my lips as I took pursuit of the holy coward. I would rip the flesh from his bones.

"Ryu. Ryu." A seductive voice entered my dream and I awoke with a start as the owner of the voice shook me awake. A low growl escaped my lips and I lunged toward the violet eyed being before me. I pinned the man beneath me and felt the burning rise of my power warm my hands. "Mmn…not that I don't mind the implied offer you are presenting." Kouta's eyes glowed and he moaned slightly. "But, Xiren said to tell you she'd be at a fashion show today and for us to stay out of trouble."

Kouta's words sank in and I blinked as the fog from my dream cleared from my mind. "Kouta?" I reassessed my situation and glared at the violet eyed man. "Why am I on top of you?"

"Mm…I woke you up and you attacked me. Not that I mind." Kouta smiled seductively and moved his hips. "Are you aware that you aren't a mortal being?"

"What are you talking about?" I held a glare as I released my housemate and sat up with a stretch.

"Mortals can't do this." Kouta held out his arms to me and there were clear burn marks on his skin. "Not that I mind you jumping me." His eyes held his seductive glow and he placed his hands on my bare chest. I could feel that strange power of his reach toward my psyche and slide off. The feeling was always strange and it was one of the many things I tried not to think too hard on. If I thought about half the mystical junk my housemate spoke of it gave me a splitting headache.

I ignored his seductive invitation and grabbed his arm to examine the burns. The marks were shaped like hands and were in the location of where I had held him down. My brow furrowed as I tried to remember what I'd done to cause those marks. As usual, anytime I tried to remember the events my dream and the few seconds after waking up, a familiar pain shot through my head as I tried. "Guh…" My eyes closed as the pain intensified and I gave up. "Whatever. You said Xiren was out?" I shook my head and got up from the couch I'd napped on.

"Yes." Kouta pouted slightly as I moved out of his reach. "You know, you could spend your day meditating and learning to control that aura of yours." Ever since Xiren gave a book on religions to the dog, he'd started doing some weird rituals and became even odder than he was before. Instead of just sitting around with his eyes closed, he now muttered strange things to go along with all of that sitting.

The man always went on about something to do with auras and supernatural stuff that I had no interest in. He claimed his powers were the reason he was able to seduce just about everyone he laid eyes on and that if he slept with them he felt more refreshed than when he actually slept. I supposed this phenomenon that he claimed was because of his aura was also his driving force in meditating. Despite my opinions on his mumbo jumbo, the man did have skills. I could not deny that he could seduce any normal man or woman he wanted.

There was a constant stream of lovers that came to visit him. Xiren didn't seem to mind as long as Kouta kept himself clean and took precautions not to produce pups. She also laid down a few ground rules for the house. One of which was any persons who came to the house, had to do so willingly. The first condition was easy enough to follow since lovers always come willingly to either Kouta or myself. We are after all attractive males.

The no pups rule did cause a short pause in the dog's stream of lovers, and this is when I learned of these rituals he performed. Since being around the sex crazed man, I have learned one thing; women will pay for your attention. I am not one to garner my attention on lower class females, but if they are willing to pay for my company that is a different story. This was a profitable venture until Xiren put that no pups rule. Having to take certain precautions did render some of our encounters rather boring.

Kouta was the one who created a solution. I was trying to brainstorm a better way to work around this rule when I caught the mutt bringing in an armful of animal parts and plants. My curiosity had gotten the better of me and I followed the man to his room. He invited me to join his ritual and since I had no other obligations, I decided to see what he was up to. That signature seductive smile plastered on his face, he had me stand in the middle of a ring of strange symbols. The symbols felt both familiar and foreign to me and when I tried to figure them out, that headache pounded through my brain.

I stood in the center of those symbols while the violet haired mutt crushed some of the plants into a bowl and spread some of the animal parts across the room. Once he'd completed these tasks, he stepped into the center of the symbols and had me hold onto the bowl while he chanted some weird words. Normally I would have walked out and considered the whole ritual thing just another of his schemes to get me into his bed, but the bowl glowed with a purple light and I was intrigued.

Once he'd finished his words in the strange language, he took the bowl back and declared the ritual over. Apparently the ritual was to make sure neither of us could sire offspring no matter what female we slept with. I may not be a huge fan of the flirtatious mutt, but when something needed to be done he certainly could make the effort. I was more surprised that thus far, the spell of his seemed to work.

"I'll pass." I rejected his offer to meditate with a flick of my tail and headed for the door. "I have some business to catch up on. You stay here and meditate or work out new rituals or whatever you do." Without giving the mutt a chance to respond, I left the house and went on with my business. Several people owed me some debts, and I intended to make them pay up.

The streets were pretty quiet, but that wasn't too unusual for this time. The early afternoon was when most teachers were at work and students were at home studying. The few animals that had completed their courses were usually at one of the jobs they'd picked up. One such fox student owed me quite a bit of money and was probably working in the park as a cleaner. His teacher recently got notice that she would be able to choose another pupil in a few days, and the one that owed me money wanted to buy a trinket to keep his teacher's attention. Apparently, his woman was super excited to bring home a cat brother to the man. How on Earth the two men were related was beyond me. I'd never heard of a cat being a brother to a fox.

As I thought about this idea of a fox having a brother who was cat, I caught sight of the park. Heading down the street, the greenspace came clearer into view and I quickly spotted the pointed ears and two toned tail of the fox I was looking for. Ayato was his name and I felt sorry for the man since his teacher was obviously working him until just before he was too exhausted to stay in his animal form. Granted Kouta's and my ears and tail showed all the time, but this was at the request of our teacher. Xiren thought our animal features were cute and if I left my ears out, she often scratched them. Even as a human having my ears scratched was like a guilty pleasure of mine.

"Yo, Ayato!" I called out to the man who jumped a little at my voice.

"Oh, Ryu. Hi." He looked at me and leaned against the rake he was using to gather the bits of grass left over from the mower. "What brings you by?"

"You owe me money." I cut straight to the chase and watched as the man sighed. He propped the rake up against a nearby tree and reached into his pocket. Part of me was disappointed he had the money already and part of me was impressed. I hadn't given the man much time to get the money together, and yet here he was handing me ten copper coins with the centers cut out. The coins were stamped with the thousand K mark and the fox handed them over without protest. "I'm impressed you gathered this so quickly."

"It's one of those double K earnings weeks that Shion so generously makes our employers honor." The man's voice was tired and sarcastic as he explained how he had the money. Between Xiren's fashion jobs earning gold G coins and my side businesses earning both copper K coins and platinum JIN coins, I didn't plan my earnings around the regular jobs and the bonuses that Shion sometimes put out for the community. "Plus, my teacher has been making me work long hours so we can buy clothes for this 'brother' I'm getting. You wouldn't want to trade teachers would you?"

"No. Xiren is mine." I growled slightly at the suggestion. "I wondered how a cat could be a brother to a fox."

"Beats me. My littermates are all female. And last I checked, foxes don't give birth to cats nor cats to foxes." Ayato sighed as he picked up his rake again. "Worst part is, she's expecting both the cat and I to fight over her. I'm starting to think getting her a trinket to show my affection was a bad idea."

"That seems to be the trend lately. Xiren is always complaining about teachers that brag how their students both love them so much and they can't decide which to choose. Then they brag about these fights their students have over them." The discussion brought Kouta to mind and I refrained from growling. It wasn't so much that the two of us fought over our teacher, it was more me having to keep him from using that power of his to seduce my woman.

"Hey! Fox! Get back to work. If I'm forced to pay you double you better work for it!" A brown haired man came over to them. From his scent he was a dog. Ryu turned his crimson eyes toward the man. "Oh…uhh Ryu. H…hi." The man stopped short at the sight of the imposing male. Jay was his name. The man's teacher took the job of the park grounds keeper and now that she had an educated student, she had him in charge of the work force and earning money for her.

"Jay." I smirked a little as the man jumped at my voice. He owed me for a favor, but he didn't know I already took my payment. The dog was madly in love with his teacher and since he was late on his return I paid that lovely teacher of his a visit. Jay's woman was quite pretty and used a lilac fragrance on her body. I found it quite tempting despite her protests against my advances. The only down side from taking the dog's woman as my payment was that tempting lilac fragrance clung to my body and I found out Xiren detested the scent.

"Hey, look Ryu I can't quite repay my favor yet. My teacher wanted a few things, but I'll pay you as soon as I can." The man avoided eye contact as I watched him struggle to ask for more time.

"I was only here to collect from Ayato." I reassured the mutt and he relaxed.

"Then I'll forgive him for taking an unauthorized break." Jay glanced over at Ayato who was leaning against his rake. The fox shook himself from his relaxing moment and started his chores again. The poor student must be close to collapsing in his animal state. Either way, I had what I came for and I lit a cigarette as I waved my farewell.

First debt of K secured to the thin chain I use to loop through the center of my coins, I headed off to collect my next due. My next collection was one I was looking forward to. A fluffy rabbit named Hayato owed me a favor for getting his new 'brother' out of some trouble with one of the local bad boys. The sudden desire for teachers to have one of the big tough boys had increased over the last few weeks. Now instead of fluffy and weak rabbits, people were adopting wolves and having them go undisciplined so they'd become that rebel student that lurked in the alleyways.

None of them really held a candle to those of us that had true power, but they could be amusing to watch. In this case Hayato's cat brother got caught at the wrong place at the wrong time with a group of those wannabes. They scattered pretty quick after I ripped off the arm of their leader. The sight of the brats running off scared and tails tucked between their legs was almost payment in and of itself. Almost.

It didn't take me long to find the bouncy student. His teacher was one of those that wanted to get their students plastered across the ranking boards that displayed the most popular students of the previous day. For some reason many of these teachers felt that the fame from that was all their lives centered around. Kouta and I have had our days plastered on those boards, but not because Xiren forced us to talk to others.

Sometimes our teacher goes out and passes her business card around to the new teachers and offers some deals or coupons to the familiar teachers. Naturally, I accompany her on this to make sure other males in the community keep their eyes to themselves. Kouta lately tags along for these days as well. The task is meant to drive her business and fund our desires, but it does result in our faces plastered across the hologram billboards around town.

Hayato and his 'brother' Fuuma were on the Daily Socializer Ranking board this morning so I knew they'd be basking in the ranking square today. The ranking square wasn't more than an elegant fountain with benches and food carts. The purpose was to give the students that ranked among the most extroverted a place to lounge and for others to conveniently find students experienced in conversing with others.

There was an awards ceremony each morning to give a prize to the top students. The prizes normally didn't amount to much and first place seemed forever taken by the teacher Wendy and her student Jiji. Not my favorite student nor did I care much for her second student Jojo. Her third, Jas did hold some promise, but only because he distracted that roommate of mine. Kouta couldn't seem to keep his eyes off the dark haired cat. The man held no interest to me and seemed to be another wannabe more than anything else. But, if the cat could be counted on to keep the mutt from getting close to Xiren he'd have my support.

My thoughts kept me occupied as I approached the city's central fountain. Why everyone strived so hard to get to have the privilege of lounging here was beyond me. Even when Kouta and I are allowed here we only collect our prize and leave. The city holds so much more to do than pose here all day for the idiots to gawk at us. Plus, the food was mediocre. The bar I ran served better food than the cheap slop they served at the stands here.

I scanned the faces of the students sitting on the benches around the fountain and spotted the rabbit. His ears were showing as were his 'brother's' and they kept yawning. A tell-tale sign that they stayed up late into the night to achieve their teacher's goal. Even their teacher had bags under her eyes. As our bodies grow tired it becomes harder to suppress our animalistic features. At least for most of us. Kouta as well as myself have a higher stamina and can remain in human form for longer than other students.

There are a few other rare students that can do this without help from the labs. Some teachers like to have extra stamina for their students and can work in the advertising building for some coveted golden G coins. With these coins they can buy a device that extends the ability for the average student to retain their human form. The device expires after a month and the effects can only be renewed with another purchase from the labs.

As I strode toward the rabbit, he caught sight of me. "Hi Ryu!" He jumped off the bench and ran over to me. Typical rabbit. He even had the white hair and child-like eyes all rabbit students have. "Look we finally made it into the rankings." Hayato was very proud of this fact and smiled widely.

"I noticed. That's what made it easy for me to find you." I looked the boy square in the eye and he unconsciously looked away. The weak can never hold the gaze of the strong and animal instinct caused most of these students to look away when my eyes met theirs.

"Find me?" The white head tilted to the side and the empty eyes seemed to be searching for something. "Oh! Did you want to come say hi? I don't think I properly introduced you to my brother." An excited hand grabbed mine and pulled me toward the cat sitting on the bench. Fuuma watched the two of us warily. Hayato hadn't been there when I dealt with the cat's problem.

I'd been on my way to check on my bar and make sure the wolf I'd hired to man the bar wasn't taking more than his tips when the teary eyed rabbit ran up to me. His ears were showing and his tail was twitching in that tell-tale sign of fear that all rabbits displayed. "Please, help my brother." He choked out between pathetic sobs.

"Why?" I puffed a plume of cigarette smoke his way and the boy looked up me with eyes full of naïve surprise.

"Because they are attacking him. Over there in that ally." The rabbit clearly expected me to run off and save this brother of his. That was the thing about this town. It was full of a misleading innocence. The worst crimes you heard about were students hazing others by pushing them around and maybe roughing each other up a bit. Most of these 'criminals' were little bad boy students whose behavior was more or less encouraged by their sweet teachers.

"So? What concern of mine is it what happens to your brother?" I took a puff of my cigarette.

"I should have known. A wolf who dresses like you and has muscles like you would be one of those ruffians." His sobs came with renewed fervor and he crumpled to his knees. "Please, I'll do anything. Just help my brother."

"Anything huh?" Music to my ears. I loved when people owed me a favor like this. Anytime someone offered to do anything for my assistance I felt this exhilarating connection…no that wasn't the right word. It was more like I held something of theirs. Something very precious and delicious.

The rabbit had made his offer and I had accepted.

With a flick of my fingers I tossed my cigarette into the street and strode to the alley. I could sense the rabbit's eyes following me as I entered the alley. The sight before me was pathetic. A group of five wolves were kicking a cat student. The cat's ears were showing and he was hissing at every kick. To the creatures credit he didn't show signs of backing down despite his position. His eyes held hate and several times he tried to grab a foot. Each retaliation from the orange haired man on the ground earned him a blow to the face.

"Yo." I called to the little pack. The group paused in their beating and turned to face me. Their eyes were curious at first, but as I caught each of their gazes they averted their eyes. One pair of green eyes shifted back to mine; the sign of the leader.

"Get lost. This cat is ours." The green eyed wolf tried to hold my gaze, but I could sense the hesitation as my crimson eyes held his.

"No." My voice held power in it. As an alpha other wolves always rallied to my howl and even now students often felt the power in my voice.

"Hey Taeon. Let him join us. He looks strong and like he can hold his own." One of the other wolves looked to the green eyed leader and the other three nodded in agreement.

"This is my pack and my prey. Get the fuck out of here you bastard." Taeon growled at me and waved his arm to demonstrate the direction I should go. I guess I'd have to make an example of this little 'pack leader'. I slowly strode toward his green eyes. My crimson eyes never left his face, though his eyes darted from mine a few times. "Are you deaf? I said to get lost." His voice betrayed his uncertainty as I approached him.

"Move." My command angered the wolf and he finally decided to lash out at me. His fist headed for my face, but not fast enough. I stepped to the left just enough for his strike to miss and grabbed the arm as it passed me. His momentum propelled him forward and taking advantage of that, I pulled him further forward. My arm pressed against his back as I pulled his right arm behind him. The force knocked him to the ground and I pressed my knee against his spine.

"Aggh!" He cried out as his arm broke from the force of my grip. "Don't just stand there you idiots!" Taeon called to his pack, but instinct had kicked in. The pack instead circled the fallen wolf and realization slowly crept into his eyes. His little followers were too new human ways to understand that this wasn't one alpha challenging another for dominance. "Get off me you bastard! I'm going to kick your ass!"

I smirked and twisted his arm further before giving it a good yank in the opposite direction. His scream of pain was quite pleasing and the other wolves seemed to regain their humanity as they saw blood. The group standing around us took off with cries of distress following behind them.

"Next time I give a command, follow it." My voice was a soft warning as I stood up. The man's green eyes were tearing with the signs of pain as he slowly rolled over onto his back. His good hand cradled the place he'd been injured.

"You…you are crazy!" Those green eyes still watered and round with fear. I ignored the man and walked over to the cat. He hissed at me and tried crawling away from me. The golden eyes of the feline's also held fear as I reached down to pull him up by the scruff of his shirt collar. I hoisted the man over my shoulder and strode from the alley. The authorities would find the wolf before he bled to death. Students were always getting lost or forgetting their place as humans so regular patrols walked the streets to help these new students find their way back home.

"Pu-put me down." The cat's voice was hesitant as I crossed the street. I ignored him and caught sight of the white haired rabbit that petitioned my help. His face was tear stained, but the purple eyes light up as he saw the student slung over my shoulder.

"Oh thank you!" He ran to meet us at the street corner and helped the orange haired cat to the ground. The cat backed away from me even as his 'brother' hugged him. "Thank you for bringing my brother back to me."

"How is a rabbit brother to a cat?" I asked with mild curiosity as I pulled my pack of cigarettes from my pocket.

"We aren't." The cat's voice was cautious and he eyed me warily as I put the smoke to my lips and lit it.

"Teacher says we are brothers so we are." The rabbit's happy voice seemed to declare the statement true since their all-knowing teacher told him it was so.

"If you say so. Just remember, Hayato you owe me for today." I put my lighter in my pocket as I looked the rabbit straight in the eyes. Again those purple eyes looked away.

"I kno- How did you know my name? I didn't tell you." His eyes belied he was impressed. The cat's eyes narrowed. It never failed. Once someone made an anything deal with me, I knew their name. That knowledge held some kind of power. There wasn't any other way to explain it.

"My name is Ryu. I'll come to collect the favor you owe me in the future." My words dogged the question and the cat continued to eye me warily as the rabbit cooed and pampered his 'brother'. I puffed on my cigarette as I walked past the two 'brothers' and made my way to my bar.

I blinked away the memory of the student's debt and though he tugged on my arm, I stayed rooted to my place. "I'm not here for introductions. Here." I handed a slip of paper to the bouncy young man and he let go. Hayato unfolded the paper and when he read the words I'd scrawled on it, his violet eyes widened.

"This…" He trailed off and looked at me with moist eyes.

"Is what you will do to repay your debt."

"But…I…this…" He glanced back at his teacher and looked like he was going to cry. "I can't do this."

"Do it or not. It's up to you, but if you refuse you'll have to pay the consequences." I shrugged, flicked my cigarette remains to the side, and pulled a pack for a fresh one from my pocket. Fuuma seemed to notice the rabbit's discomfort because he stood up. Wisely he didn't come interfere. It wasn't like I was asking the rabbit to steal anything or do anything to lower his integrity too much. I just needed him to flirt with a certain student so that said student would stop looking at Xiren every time we socialized with him.

"I can't do 'that' with a guy." His ears drooped and a blush spread across his cheeks the more he stared at the paper. "I…" Hayato glanced to his teacher again. "I like my teacher." Those violet eyes lowered to the ground.

"Good for you." I lit the cigarette and put my lighter back in my pocket. "Enjoy your spot light." With a dismissive wave I turned and headed off to my next destination. The rabbit would do what I asked. They always did. Who knows maybe the rabbit will end up liking the particular cat student that was flirting with my own teacher.

I caught the rabbit from the corner of my eye as he clutched the paper to his chest and that faint blush deepened. Yes he'd do what I asked. A satisfied smile crossed my lips as I puffed on my cigarette and headed on my way. The bar was open today and I should stop by to set up the double K I'd owe my employees.


	5. Chapter 5

My workers never complained about their wages and I made sure to pay them well so that they didn't bother trying to pull double shifts or milk the clock on double K days. Every employer got a notice a week before the announcement so that we can prepare for the influx of work requests and make sure we can dip into our reserves if needed. Not complying with the double pay campaign meant revoking your license to own a business.

Xiren also ran a shop, but she staffed her clothing store with teachers instead of students. The double K campaign didn't apply to her shop as she didn't have students working there. Teachers were paid in G and she only hired temps. Xiren preferred to run the shop herself so she only hired help when there was a show she needed to get ready for.

The bar I ran was in the shopping district of town and served a modest menu of food as well as both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Youta was reluctant to allow a bar in the city and wrote into the city ordinances that all bars also had to serve food and could not serve to minors. Since the term minors wasn't defined and these teachers all lived on their own as adults would, I decided a minor was any student or teacher accompanied by a parent.

After passing several streets I spotted the wooden exterior of the familiar bar. The red letters blazed the name Devil's Gate across the door and I turned the wrought iron handle of my establishment. Just before entering the building, I flicked the remains of my cigarette into the street. While I didn't mind if people smoked in my bar, several teachers petitioned Youta to put a law out that stated there would be no smoking in a building. There were battles you fought and battles you didn't. No smoking in buildings wasn't worth fighting.

"Oh! Good morning Mr. Ryu!" The very happy voice of the fluffy haired greeter I hired welcomed me into the guests and seat them washed over my ears. My black wolf ears twitched at the sound and before long I was pounced on by the excitable young wolf.

"Libra." I patted the pink haired man on his head and he smiled up at me. Libra was a very excitable young man and the perfect person to set customers in a good mood before ordering their food and drinks. He was a bit clumsy as the scar across his face attested, but not so clumsy that he broke too much in the building.

"What brings you by? We are almost ready to open if you want to inspect everything." Libra's smile was almost intoxicating and even his blue eyes lit up with happiness. I had four employees that worked the bar. They were all wolves and were brothers. Each brother had a different teacher and lived separately, but they wanted to have a reason to see each other and applied for the jobs as soon as I posted the now hiring sign.

"Double K day. I have your bonuses and thought I'd give them to you guys personally." I removed sixteen copper coins from my chain of coins and held them up. These were stamped with the ten thousand mark and Libra's eyes widened when he saw them. I never carried less than one million K on my person at a time and being generous to your employees ensured they represented your establishment well.

"Wow! You are very generous Mr. Ryu!" The pink haired wolf turned and cupped his hands to his mouth. "Hey guys! Ryu is here with our pay!" He called to his brothers and three heads popped into the entryway. The first time we had a double K day, I gave my workers each a silver mini gacha ticket. Shion heard about this and visited my door. He explained that being generous with such things was a great way to reward the community, but for the campaign I had to henceforth honor it or he'd have my establishment shut down. In the long run it was better for my income flow to just pay out the extra K.

"Mornin' Mr. Ryu." Louis my waiter who doubled as a bouncer shook my hand in greeting. He too had a toothy grin that reached his golden eyes. The brothers were a happy and reliable bunch.

"Ah, Mr. Ryu. You should come by more often." Kalmia, my chef hugged me tightly and kissed my cheek in greeting. With his greeting out of the way, the man rested his head of short purple hair on my shoulder. Kalima was a decent cook, but he had a tendency to flirt with the male clientele. He preferred the company of a man and liked his men strong and dominating. Needless to say he reminded me of a certain obnoxious housemate and I often had to remember not to shove him around like I did the mutt.

"It's good to see you stop by Mr. Ryu. Would you like to inspect the bar before you head out?" The red eyes of my bartender and manager greeted me. Kia was the fourth brother and the most efficient and competent of the four. He managed things for me and did a very good job of it.

"I don't have time to inspect things today, Kia. I trust your judgement." I waved off the man's offer. "Here are the wages I owe each of you for today's work." I handed each man four of the ten thousand marks. My wages were meant to be competitive and I paid more than any of the other jobs out there. Teachers that could afford the pass, forced their students to work long hours in the tunnels.

The city had a network of tunnels running under it. These tunnels had various uses and had to be maintained for each of their functions. Everything from tunnels holding the city's power cables to the sewage lines had to be inspected for cracks or broken wires. This job paid almost a thousand K an hour, so I pay two thousand K per hour. I also open my bar at eleven in the morning and close it at nine in the evening. Ten hour shifts are coveted and the brothers are happy to work them.

My bar was a good source of income, and kept Shion off my back when it came to the small stuff. He liked to keep order in the city and didn't appreciate my contracts with fellow students. Plus, you never know when an establishment could be useful for passing off counterfeit currency or selling illegal objects. "Keep up the good work guys." I waved to my staff and headed on my way.

"Bye Mr. Ryu!" Libra's excitable voice called after me as I left the bar. The rest of my day consisted of collecting more K from students that owed me such as their debt. Those that owed me a favor often fared better than those that owed me K. After all, I collected currency as soon as I could and favors I liked to keep stored for when the person had a skill I needed.

Collecting the day's debts lasted several hours into the evening, and by the time I was heading back the sun was starting to dip low. It was about this time that Xiren usually started making dinner. The perfect time to head back to the house. Along the way, I saw several students traversing the streets with their animal features showing and near collapse. I was very glad that Xiren had her own means to support our household's expensive tastes. Neither I nor Kouta had worked or studied to the point of true exhaustion.

After crossing several streets, the front door to the place I called home came into view. As much fun as bullying people and collecting what was owed to me was, I was happy to see my home. Wolves value their territory and their dens along with the family and warmth that encompasses them. I opened the door and entered my familiar domain. The scent of stew wafted to my sensitive sense of smell and I slowly wagged my tail. I removed my jacket and hung it in the closet by the front door. As I headed to the kitchen, I caught sight of Xiren on the couch.

A loud growl escaped my throat as the sight before me registered in my consciousness. Xiren was leaning back into the couch cushions with the mutt's head laying in her lap. Kouta was caressing her thigh as my woman's fingers untangled the violet locks. Xiren was surely and undoubtedly mine. No other male was allowed to touch her and here in my own den was an inferior male caressing her.

My ears fell back against my skull and my tail bristled as I grabbed a handful of the mutt's hair and yanked him from the couch. "Ryu!" Xiren looked shocked as I held Kouta up by his hair. I could feel the anger burn in my eyes as I looked into the man's violet ones. To his credit, he lowered his eyes, but the look in them wasn't one of submission. Pleasure shone clearly in his eyes and I could feel that familiar power or whatever he called it reach for me.

"Do not ever touch Xiren." My voice was low and I could feel my words carry their command.

"Mmm…Ryu I acknowledge your power, but Xiren is not any man's woman." Kouta smiled and his eyes met mine. "You have yet to claim her as yours. She's fair game." The taunting in his whisper was clear and only fueled my anger.

As my rage built I could feel something inside me release. It felt like something let go; like a chain holding me back had finally broke. With my free hand I grabbed Kouta by the neck and held him up to my eye level. The heat I felt from this morning coursed through my body and I could feel it concentrate into my hand as I once again gave my command. "She is my woman. Do not touch her."

"Ryu! Let go before you seriously hurt him." Xiren had jumped up from the couch and was reaching to pry my fingers from the mutt's throat. It was then that I remembered Kouta enjoyed pain. I watched detachedly as my teacher's fingers reached my hand. "Ouch!" She pulled her hands back and blew on her fingers like she does when she touches something that is too hot. It was then that I realized a faint smoke was coming from Kouta's skin and my hand was glowing.

I quickly released the mutt who fell coughing to the floor. Xiren dropped to her knees to examine the mutt as I flexed my fingers. This time I could feel something flowing through my body that fueled this glow and as I thought about the feeling and concentrated my mind the glow strengthened. It felt like a fire was flowing through me and as I pictured flames coming from my fingers, small orange flames licked across my skin.

"Ah see I knew you were more than you said you were." Kouta's voice rasped as he regained his breath. My attention switched from the flames I'd created to the pair on the floor. Xiren was helping Kouta to his feet and I could see a clear burn mark across his neck. The mark clearly matched the print of my hand. A soft growl escaped my throat as I saw Xiren once again giving the mutt attention he did not require.

"Ryu quit with the growling and put out those flames before you set something on fire." Her voice held a scolding that she often used when she felt there were things more important for me to focus on that what I was doing. It barely registered in my mind that she didn't seem shocked or concerned with the fact that my hand was on fire.

"Do not give Kouta any more attention." I glared slightly at my teacher and instinctively relaxed the will that was holding the flame. As I relaxed, the flame stopped and my ears lifted. Both clear signs that I was calming down.

"Ryu what am I going to do with you?" Xiren sighed and helped Kouta up. I could tell the man was milking things for all he was worth. The mutt leaned against my teacher as she helped him to the couch.

"What is he going to do when our new housemate arrives?" That seductive voice called out as the violet eyed man relaxed into the soft cushions of the couch.

"New what?" My ears laid back again and a growl erupted from my throat.

"Calm down Ryu. Shion sent me another note stating that I will be taking on a third student." Xiren informed me with her matter of fact tone.

"No." My voice commanded and I glared at her.

"Yes." She countered. "It's already set and I'll be going to get our new housemate in a few days."

"No more males in this house!"

Xiren rolled her eyes which infuriated me and I could feel that fire passing through my body again. It was so tempting to just release that fire and break something. "Look, I know you don't want another wolf in the house and Kouta has already expressed he doesn't want another dog, so I'll be picking up a fox student. Hopefully this one will bring some sanity to this house."

Those words stopped my temper for a moment. Kouta knew about this before me. He had the chance to put his thoughts into her decision before I did. I was alpha male in this house and somehow this mutt was edging in on my place. I took a breath to calm myself as I watched Xiren head to the kitchen presumably to attend to the stew I could smell. I was missing something. Doing something wrong if my woman was speaking about household things to a male other than me.

"You seem rather distracted Ryu." Kouta apparently recovered from my outburst despite the burn mark on his throat and sauntered over to me. "Perhaps you need to let off some of that energy." The man's slender fingers trailed over my bare chest and his strange force tried to ensnare me. As usual the effect was lost on me and I brushed him away.

I had other concerns to deal with. Xiren was confiding in another man when her attention should be focused only on my needs. I needed time to consider things. I plopped myself down on the couch and kicked my feet up on the coffee table. My head leaned into the back of the couch for a moment before pulling a cigarette from the pack sitting on the table. I reached for the lighter and paused just before picking it up. If I could create a fire from my hand, what better way to light the smoke?

My thoughts turned to earlier and that feeling of flames passing through my veins. I concentrated on that feeling and as my thought about that feeling, it was like my body knew what to do. Within minutes a small flame touched the top of my finger and a smile spread across my lips. I light the cigarette and closed my eyes as I took a drag from the comforting object. The small flame dissipated as I turned my mind to other things and I began to mull over a solution to my concerns over my teacher.


End file.
